Oregon opponent early scouting report: Washington State

Updated Jul 25, 2019; Posted Jul 17, 2019

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Dezmon Patmon of the Washington State Cougars catches a pass in the end zone against Thomas Graham Jr. of the Oregon Ducks scoring a touchdown in the second half at Martin Stadium on October 20, 2018 in Pullman, Washington. (Photo by William Mancebo/Getty Images)

Lawson: “By most accounts, Gubrud’s been the favorite to win the job since his transfer to the Cougars became official in early February. Even though he doesn’t have the same grasp of the Air Raid offense - not yet at least - and essentially missed the entirety of spring camp with a foot/ankle injury, it would be hard to keep someone with over 100 career touchdowns and Gubrud’s in-game experience off the field. His health will be the biggest wild card. Gubrud’s sustained two fairly serious injuries in a six-month span and even if he can avoid a third one, it’s fair to wonder how the last two affect his willingness/ability to make plays outside of the pocket or use his feet, which made him such a threat at Eastern Washington. Mike Leach has made it clear he plans to whittle the competition down from three players to two fairly early in fall camp, so we should have more clarity on the QB front by about the second week of August.”

2) Is Max Borghi capable of shouldering the load as the lead back?

Lawson: "Up until the middle of last month, it looked as though he’d have to, but the mid-summer addition of Deon McIntosh - a former Notre Dame running back who rushed for 1,000 yards at East Mississippi last season - totally changes the landscape in the backfield for WSU. Borghi still figures to be the lead back, but McIntosh gives the Cougars a bona fide No. 2 who should be able to spell Borghi the way Borghi spelled James Williams last season. Even as the team’s secondary ballcarrier in 2018, Borghi still was able to tie WSU’s freshman touchdowns record and many think he’ll emerge as one of the Pac-12’s top backs - and probably the league’s most versatile - this fall with a more consistent workload. Don’t expect Leach to change his philosophy on running the football, but if the Cougars somehow run into problems at quarterback, they have two legitimate tailbacks they can turn to.

3) Who replaces Peyton Pelluer and Logan Tago?

Lawson: “An overlooked aspect of Pelluer’s season-ending injury in 2017 - and injuries to two other senior linebackers - was the opportunity it gave the Cougars to train up Jahad Woods, Justus Rogers and Dillon Sherman. Now, all three are juniors who have more playing experience than a bulk of the seniors in the Pac-12. Woods was an All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention selection last season and will presumably start alongside Sherman or Rogers, though those two should see plenty of in-game rotation. Replacing Pelluer as a vocal leader/defensive captain promises to be harder than replacing him as a leader, though, and now with Jalen Thompson out of the mix, we’ll wait to see who steps up as the ‘quarterback’ of the defense this fall. Tago’s loss is significant as well, especially considering he’d just found his niche at defensive end, but the Cougars have a handful of linemen capable of playing two or three positions, and if Nnamdi Oguayo can stay healthy, he’s the favorite to anchor the D-end spot.”

4) What will be the key to Wazzu sustaining its defensive success?

Lawson: "The Cougars have lost key defensive pieces every year - Hercules Mata’afa last offseason and both Thompson and Pelluer this offseason - but managed to rebound and improve their numbers the following season. While you can’t devalue the importance of players like that, WSU’s steady progress on the defensive side of the ball should probably be attributed to the scheme, rather than the personnel. The Cougars reduced the opponent’s scoring per game every year under former DC Alex Grinch and they’ve done it both years under Tracy Claeys. Thompson’s loss hits hard, but WSU has decent depth in the secondary and just about everywhere else for that matter, plus the Cougars finally get to unveil Lamonte McDougle, the nose tackle who transferred from West Virginia after earning Freshman All-America honors two seasons ago.

5) Last year was such a success but with another change at QB what are the realistic expectations for Wazzu this year?

Lawson: “As they always have, the Cougars will go as their quarterback goes. This time last year, many were anticipating a 6-6 season at best, but Gardner Minshew wound up vaulting WSU to 11-2 - the best record in program history. Gubrud was considered one of the best FCS players in the country during his tenure at EWU and if he can recapture that form - still a considerable ‘if’ - there’s no reason the Cougars shouldn’t be targeting a Pac-12 North title. WSU’s receiving corps will be the most accomplished in the conference, the offensive line returns four of five starters and a breakout year is expected for Borghi. The Cougars caught a few breaks last season and they’d probably need a few more to be in the mix toward the end, not to mention a win over Washington in the Apple Cup - something that hasn’t happened in seven years now.”

Despite a staff full of former Wazzu assistants Oregon has lost four straight to Mike Leach’s team. Last year’s loss was understandable in hindsight, given Minshew’s play and the hysteria in Pullman with College GameDay being in town, but the early offensive execution issues were inexcusable. Until last year, Oregon hadn’t lost to Washington State as a ranked team since 2006. The Ducks need to end the losing streak in this series to truly return to being the dominant team in the Pac-12 North.

Biggest test for secondary

Washington State is always going to be a challenge because of the Air Raid but there isn’t a deeper wide receiver corps in the Pac-12 than what the Cougars have coming back. Individual matchups might be more difficult, but Wazzu is going to push Oregon’s secondary to match up one-on-one across the board. By this point, Mykael Wright and Verone McKinley should have enough experience to be called upon in critical spots.

State of pass rush

Minshew had an uncanny ability to get the ball out quickly so despite WSU’s pass-heavy attack he took few sacks. Time will tell whether Gabe Gubrud is as capable, particularly in a hostile road environment. Oregon will have had seven games to identify its top pass rushers by this point and will need to call on them to create consistent pressure.

Second of critical three-game stretch

Having already faced Stanford and Washington and with USC up next, Oregon’s position in the Pac-12 North race could be largely determined after this game.

Washington State storylines:

Gubrud’s second big road test

As difficult as Oregon’s road schedule is, Washington State’s might be the most hostile, with trips to Utah, Autzen and Washington. By this point we’ll know a lot more about Gubrud, assuming he indeed wins the starting job, and how potent WSU’s offense is.

Holding on to first place?

WSU’s schedule is backloaded. Trips to Utah and Arizona State won’t be easy necessarily but UCLA and Colorado shouldn’t pose a challenge. It’s possible the Cougars come to Eugene either 4-0 or 3-1 in Pac-12 play and in control of their own destiny while Oregon, Stanford and Washington will all have already faced each other.

An Oregon win would mean:

At the very least it’ll end the losing streak in the series and be a boost to the defense. It would also mean the Ducks are most likely no worse than 3-2 in Pac-12 play and depending on the Stanford and Washington games, could be 4-1 or 5-0 and with the toughest division games over with.

An Oregon loss would mean:

A fifth straight loss in the series. Washington State could likely be in sole possession of first place in the North division, albeit with Stanford and Washington in November. If the Ducks are 4-1 in Pac-12 play it wouldn’t be a terrible loss, but 3-2 or worse would make winning the division difficult.